Who sticks?

[HookKing]

I agree. Forbort has paid his dues. He's just stuck on waivers. If he had to clear waivers, we wouldn't be even having this discussion. My big concern is watching the D scramble around in our own end again like last year. After watching him play all year in Manchester last year, he really grows on you. He simply gets the play going the other direction, which might not seem like much, but when a team lacks that at times, it can be rather valuable. Even though he's yet to play one NHL game, they will miss him in the lineup. I really thought he played well with Doughty and wouldn't be against seeing more of that. It could free up Muzzin to be on a second pairing with someone. It would balance the units out more.

Finally, someone who gets it!

 

[bob77]

No, as much as I'm skeptical about what I've seen from him this season, McNabb was objectively VERY good last season, by every metric and even by the eye test, ESPECIALLY considering he was tossed right into the fire of a craptacular season. He SHOULD be a good 2nd pairing dman, not just serviceable; the org has great faith in him as they did in Muzzin. I'm worried about him taking a step back, sure, but let's not minimize what he did as if he was one of last year's problems. He was one of the bright spots.

I agree with you also. To me, Greene is the one that has got to go. That way when you play Erhoff, Martinez, or DD with him, speed or mobility isn't as much of a factor.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

I agree. Forbort has paid his dues. He's just stuck on waivers. If he had to clear waivers, we wouldn't be even having this discussion. My big concern is watching the D scramble around in our own end again like last year. After watching him play all year in Manchester last year, he really grows on you. He simply gets the play going the other direction, which might not seem like much, but when a team lacks that at times, it can be rather valuable. Even though he's yet to play one NHL game, they will miss him in the lineup. I really thought he played well with Doughty and wouldn't be against seeing more of that. It could free up Muzzin to be on a second pairing with someone. It would balance the units out more.

Yes he's very simple but effective. I'm just worried about his foot speed, because allegedly that was a strength. The real problem at this point was that he looked out of his league vs. a great team (Ducks) but fantastic vs. a team that had its head up its ass (Avs) but also with Doughty. That's great that he can play at his level and I'd love to see him get some game exposure, and agree that Muzzin playing down the lineup would be amazing. I also agree that the waiver game is why he's down. But I also don't think he outplayed any of our regular guys in Doughty, Muzzin, Martinez, Ehrhoff...you could argue he did in McNabb.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

Finally, someone who gets it!

You mean someone who agrees with you?

Are you going to want to dumpster Forbort if he struggles like you do McNabb?

 

[HookKing]

Yes he's very simple but effective. I'm just worried about his foot speed, because allegedly that was a strength. The real problem at this point was that he looked out of his league vs. a great team (Ducks) but fantastic vs. a team that had its head up its ass (Avs) but also with Doughty. That's great that he can play at his level and I'd love to see him get some game exposure, and agree that Muzzin playing down the lineup would be amazing. I also agree that the waiver game is why he's down. But I also don't think he outplayed any of our regular guys in Doughty, Muzzin, Martinez, Ehrhoff...you could argue he did in McNabb.

Forbort has tons more footspeed then Schultz or McNabb. What he doesn't have is much experience with NHL players and he was not out of his league with Anaheim. Where did you get that?

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

Forbort has tons more footspeed then Schultz or McNabb. What he doesn't have is much experience with NHL players and he was not out of his league with Anaheim. Where did you get that?

That's what I thought too but he looked clompy, like Muzzin, vs. Anaheim. Much of that had to do with their speed too I'm sure and I'm guessing some of it was hesitation vs. actually being slow, but it's the same thing if he isn't moving.

Maybe 'out of his league' was unfair since everyone looked pretty sloppy too, but he didn't look any better than anyone else vs. Anaheim, at least, not enough to say definitively 'he deserves a spot.'

After watching Manchester I said he looks a lot like Schultz (in a good way) with better skating/speed and an excellent first pass; vs. Anaheim, he just looked like Schultz.

I like the guy, think he has some tools, and really want him to succeed, but I think a lot of folks here are getting shiny new toy syndrome with him while over-hating the current crop of d-men.

 

[HookKing]

You mean someone who agrees with you?

Are you going to want to dumpster Forbort if he struggles like you do McNabb?

Nope. I want him to get a legitimate shot. If he struggles then send him back down. Remember Amart's first game? Just brutal, but he had to know he wasn't ready and had no one to blame but himself. He learned from it and eventually made the team.

I admit I'm not crazy about McNabb, I don't see him as a legitimate 2nd pair anytime soon (if ever). 3rd pair is fine for him though (but not with Greene).

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

Nope. I want him to get a legitimate shot. If he struggles then send him back down. Remember Amart's first game? Just brutal, but he had to know he wasn't ready and had no one to blame but himself. He learned from it and eventually made the team.

I admit I'm not crazy about McNabb, I don't see him as a legitimate 2nd pair anytime soon (if ever). 3rd pair is fine for him though (but not with Greene).

God yeah, that went from promising to a dumpster fire real fast

I agree on wanting him to have a fair shake. I just think waivers make that difficult and playing big minutes in Ontario is better than sitting on LA's bench. Luckily it's close by so not as big a deal anymore!

I think McNabb is already a good long-term 3rd pairing d-man, I just saw a lot of the upside last year and don't see any reason he can't be there consistently long-term either. But I do worry about his skating more than the others, he's only slightly better than Greene in that regard.

 

[HookKing]

That's what I thought too but he looked clompy, like Muzzin, vs. Anaheim. Much of that had to do with their speed too I'm sure and I'm guessing some of it was hesitation vs. actually being slow, but it's the same thing if he isn't moving.

Maybe 'out of his league' was unfair since everyone looked pretty sloppy too, but he didn't look any better than anyone else vs. Anaheim, at least, not enough to say definitively 'he deserves a spot.'

After watching Manchester I said he looks a lot like Schultz (in a good way) with better skating/speed and an excellent first pass; vs. Anaheim, he just looked like Schultz.









I like the guy, think he has some tools, and really want him to succeed, but I think a lot of folks here are getting shiny new toy syndrome with him while over-hating the current crop of d-men.

The current crop (in aggregate) pretty much sucks. It's even worse than last year. That is the reality.

 

[Raccoon Jesus]

The current crop (in aggregate) pretty much sucks. It's even worse than last year. That is the reality.

Okay--but then how does Forbort solve that? Who is he immediately better than? Greene? Sure doesn't replace him in front of the net or on the PK. Doughty is elite and in better shape than ever. Muzzin is a perfect #2. Ehrhoff is a question mark, but still an experienced d-man that is more than fine on the second pairing. Same with McNabb. And Martinez...would be great if he can consistently play second pairing all year but his game went to crap for that after the concussion. I don't see how we're worse than last year given the patchwork it was all year unless you're one of the few people who thought Regehr was awesome (and remember how much time he missed, too).

I guess I'm just not seeing the gloom and doom about our d-core. I see question marks, but I don't see at all how it can be definitively worse.

Edit: durr you're saying try him out. sorry it's late

 

[HookKing]

Okay--but then how does Forbort solve that? Who is he immediately better than? Greene? Sure doesn't replace him in front of the net or on the PK. Doughty is elite and in better shape than ever. Muzzin is a perfect #2. Ehrhoff is a question mark, but still an experienced d-man that is more than fine on the second pairing. Same with McNabb. And Martinez...would be great if he can consistently play second pairing all year but his game went to crap for that after the concussion. I don't see how we're worse than last year given the patchwork it was all year unless you're one of the few people who thought Regehr was awesome (and remember how much time he missed, too).

I guess I'm just not seeing the gloom and doom about our d-core. I see question marks, but I don't see at all how it can be definitively worse.

Edit: durr you're saying try him out. sorry it's late

Did you watch Greene last year on the PK? Forbort might be/is probably way better on the pk but we won't know that if he's in Ontario.

 

[gnarls barkley]

Okay--but then how does Forbort solve that? Who is he immediately better than? Greene? Sure doesn't replace him in front of the net or on the PK. Doughty is elite and in better shape than ever. Muzzin is a perfect #2. Ehrhoff is a question mark, but still an experienced d-man that is more than fine on the second pairing. Same with McNabb. And Martinez...would be great if he can consistently play second pairing all year but his game went to crap for that after the concussion. I don't see how we're worse than last year given the patchwork it was all year unless you're one of the few people who thought Regehr was awesome (and remember how much time he missed, too).

I guess I'm just not seeing the gloom and doom about our d-core. I see question marks, but I don't see at all how it can be definitively worse.

Edit: durr you're saying try him out. sorry it's late

it's because we were spoiled previously, our 3rd pairing (AMart-Greene) could be a 2nd pairing on half the teams in the league, and Voynov was a #2 playing as a #3 for us.

none of those question marks on D are as bad as people think, it just SEEMS bad in comparison to the absolute luxury we've had in the past. It's certainly an upgrade stability-wise from last year, and last year the team's issue STILL wasn't defense despite the total revolving door ****-show.

 

[cali101]

this was from a couple days ago but i missed it...

http://mayorsmanor.com/2015/10/kings-final-roster-moves-preparing-for-2015-16-nhl-season/

basically predicts everything that will happen today for the kings

 

[cyclones22]

it's because we were spoiled previously, our 3rd pairing (AMart-Greene) could be a 2nd pairing on half the teams in the league, and Voynov was a #2 playing as a #3 for us.

none of those question marks on D are as bad as people think, it just SEEMS bad in comparison to the absolute luxury we've had in the past. It's certainly an upgrade stability-wise from last year, and last year the team's issue STILL wasn't defense despite the total revolving door ****-show.

Exactly. If the 4th best GAA isn't good enough to get you into the playoffs, then there are other problems to consider.

 

[KingsOfCali25]

this was from a couple days ago but i missed it...

http://mayorsmanor.com/2015/10/kings-final-roster-moves-preparing-for-2015-16-nhl-season/

basically predicts everything that will happen today for the kings

Sweet! I hope he's right because we have it the same way. Although isn't he wrong most of the time? So that might not be good for my picks lol

 

[cali101]

updates:

Brennan Klak ‏@nhlupdate 2m2 minutes ago
Kings place J.F. Berube and Jamie McBain on waivers

The Mayor John Hoven ‏@mayorNHL 42s42 seconds ago
Schultz wins 7th D spot, LA Kings put McBain on waivers, other moves done, opening night roster set http://mayorsmanor.com/2015/10/kings-final-roster-moves-preparing-for-2015-16-nhl-season/ …

 

[B-MEL]

Can tell you that these 3 will be around for little bit. Schultz, Weal & Forbort

So by process of elimination, Mersch, O'Neill, LoVerde, Berube and Lowry most like being sent down today.

From deep beneath the crust of Toyota Sports Center,

B-MEL

 

[Telos]

Not a huge fan of Schultz over McBain, but I don't think it matters greatly.

 

[goosh]

Not a huge fan of Schultz over McBain, but I don't think it matters greatly.

I'm not a fan of that move either, and it could have an impact given our injuries on D.

 

[gnarls barkley]

after thinking about this a bit, i'd wager that Schultz/McBain was a relative coin toss in terms of actual on-ice play, and Greene starting season on IR meant they likely preferred a big defensive type to fill in - something that Schultz fits the bill for a lot more than McBain.

 

[PRMan]

I guess everyone has been watching a different Forbort in the preseason than I was.

I watched him get straight up passed on a breakaway in the first NHL game. He's like Matt Greene, but SLOWER.

COULD he be an NHL player? I guess so with great positioning (hey, worked for Robyn Regehr, right?).

But I think McBain and Schultz are better than Forbort right now.

 

[damacles1156]

I guess everyone has been watching a different Forbort in the preseason than I was.

I watched him get straight up passed on a breakaway in the first NHL game. He's like Matt Greene, but SLOWER.

COULD he be an NHL player? I guess so with great positioning (hey, worked for Robyn Regehr, right?).

But I think McBain and Schultz are better than Forbort right now.

Doughty gets beat some games still with speed. What exactly are you pointing out ?

A rookie with Zero NHL games, got beat with NHL speed ?

 

[HYORI 1963]

after thinking about this a bit, i'd wager that Schultz/McBain was a relative coin toss in terms of actual on-ice play, and Greene starting season on IR meant they likely preferred a big defensive type to fill in - something that Schultz fits the bill for a lot more than McBain.

My exact thought as well.

We definitely needed some beef back there, and Schultz will provide that temporarily until Greene's return.

 

[bob77]

Doughty gets beat some games still with speed. What exactly are you pointing out ?

A rookie with Zero NHL games, got beat with NHL speed ?

I was at that game and he didn't get walked around by one guy. The play referred to here was a broken play about 15 feet inside while he was holding the blue line and a guy released the zone quick and got a stretch pass up the middle. Quite a bit different than saying some guy went around him. Quite frankly, I think everyone will soon notice that he very difficult to just flat out go around.

 

[HookKing]

I guess everyone has been watching a different Forbort in the preseason than I was.

I watched him get straight up passed on a breakaway in the first NHL game. He's like Matt Greene, but SLOWER.

COULD he be an NHL player? I guess so with great positioning (hey, worked for Robyn Regehr, right?).

But I think McBain and Schultz are better than Forbort right now.

By that standard DD should have been demoted during his rookie year for getting beat like a rented mule by speedster Ryan Smyth, not to mention Amart's horror show first game.